Packaging integrated circuits such that they can be easily and reliably connected to an external circuit requires a mechanism capable of making a large number of required electrical connections in a manner that is secure and electrically reliable. Furthermore, the large amount of heat produced by many such integrated circuits must be dissipated, and therefore must be accounted for in designing the integrated circuit mounting and packaging systems.
As integrated circuits increase in complexity, they become more difficult to heat sink adequately. Faster integrated circuits with denser internal circuitry produce more heat over a given physical area than previous generations of integrated circuits. Also, the greater amount of circuitry on denser integrated circuits are likely to require heat sinks that are physically larger than the top surface of the integrated circuit or that have other larger or more complex geometries.
Large heat sinks capable of dissipating many tens of watts of power converted to heat by integrated circuits can cause unacceptable forces on the integrated circuits when mounted directly to the integrated circuit package. For example, such systems may be required to withstand physical shock of up to 50 g, or 50 times the acceleration of gravity, without undue physical stress. When this type of physical shock is applied to a processor with a heavy heat sink attached to it, the weight of the heat sink can cause undue stress, for example, shear stress on the electrical connection pins of the integrated circuit. Also the clips used to hold the heat sink on to the integrated circuit may not be able to retain a heavy heat sink under such heavy acceleration, and so may fail to acceptably secure heavy heat sinks.
Therefore, a device is needed to better support heavy heat sinks. Such a device should transfer the forces applied to a heavy heat sink under heavy acceleration away from the integrated circuit and onto a supporting structure such as a motherboard or securely mounted integrated circuit socket.
Another drawback of existing heat sink attachment clips is that they can be difficult to use. Typically a conventional heat sink attachment clip attaches at two or four points. Ensuring that all attachment points are properly engaged by the clip can be an awkward and time consuming task. Furthermore, removal of an attached clip, for example, to replace a component or to allow service access can be even more difficult as the latching mechanism used is biased to a latched position and it is difficult to access the attachment point and more difficult to exert sufficient force to disengage the latching mechanism.
It is desirable for a device for supporting heat sinks such as a heat sink attachment clip to be capable of providing sufficiently high loads against the integrated circuit package to continue to maintain a load against the integrated circuit despite the potential for heavy shock accelerations in the opposite direction, and also to minimize thermal resistance attributed to the joining of the two surfaces.
It is also desirable for a heat sink attachment clip to bee capable of providing sufficiently high loads to the integrated circuit at a fraction of the required installation load; be capable of facilitating rapid system assembly with a minimum of labour without providing undue stress on the assembly operator from the use of poor ergonomic practices and provide easy heat sink clip attach and removal capabilities, preferably without the need of additional tools.
Additionally, a heat sink it is desirable for a heat sink attachment clip to provide low cost heat sink clip integration features for facilitation of heat sink clip/heat sink component assemblies; and avoid causing undue stress on the mounting attachment hardware or accompanying circuit board.